ISIS leader Baghdadi just issued his first statement in almost a year

An image grab taken from a video released on July 5, 2014, by Al-Furqan Media shows ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi preaching during Friday prayer at a mosque in Mosul, Iraq. Al-Furqan Media/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images

On Wednesday, ISIS released a brand new audio recording from Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi — the first we’ve heard from the reclusive leader in almost a year.

The timing of the message is no accident. Coming just as US-backed Iraqi counterterrorism forces have finally breached the eastern outskirts of the city of Mosul, the Sunni terrorist group’s last remaining stronghold in Iraq, the message is both a sign of how beleaguered the group is feeling right now, as well as a clear message that they will not go quietly.

In the 30-minute audio recording, titled “This is what God and His Messenger promised us,” Baghdadi calls on ISIS fighters to remain steadfast, reassuring them that stronger enemies don’t equal better enemies and telling them not to flee the battlefield.

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